Journal #4160

It was a windy 3:00 in the afternoon. The wind was strong and enthusiastic, and I wasn?t. I zigzagged down the street on the way to the Dole office, avoiding pavement cracks and invisible dog shit. My stride seemed peculiar, even to myself. Passers-by stared at me with a hint of mild amusement ? as if I was some type of ?white? giraffe stuck in a typhoon. I reached a set of traffic lights about half-way through in this dreadful trek through ?urbania?, and the wind began to whisper in my ear. It said;
?Slow down.?
And I did for a brief moment, realising I might be a little early.
?Yes?, I replied.
?But on one condition.?
?What would that be?, the wind answered.
?That you take this fucking smell of Ralgex away from me.?
It didn?t respond, but I knew the answer already.
I walked into the shitty place, card in hand.
?Take a seat?, said a woman.
I stood over by some column, not wanting to sit in case the terrible deodorant-laced mouthwash aroma interfered with the others. Walking into this place is like walking into a saloon full of mad people. They all stared, as if I was treading on their collective foot. Being in this place is like having no blood.
A man stood from the row of seats. There was an empty seat at the end of the row. I walked passed to others and sat down. I felt my eyes crossing, and my back was burning from all these chemicals.
I was finally called, and I just wanted to get it over and done with, but it wasn?t over and done with until the guy could find a bunch of papers and slowly type at his console. He turned the computer screen around so I could see. It looked like bullshit, I hardly noticed a word. I knew the stench was probably noticed at this point. A women near by began to react by sniffing repeatedly.
?It?s next week you got to come in, mate look see??
?Oh, right, yeah, yeah. But I was told it was today at 3:00, I?m sure of it.?
The man didn?t seem to understand, or care. I wouldn?t either.
?So, can we get this finished so I can leave here?, I thought.
As soon as I signed the papers, I left quickly. Not wanting to linger around too much. The twisted giraffe left the building. The street was harsh once more. People waiting in cars gawked at me as I passed, but I took no noticed and carried on.